Planning Commission

Blaine City Hall City of Blaine 10801 Town Sq Dr NE Blaine MN 55449 Anoka County, Minnesota Minutes Planning Commission The Planning Commission is an advisory body to the City Council. One of the Commission’s functions is to hold public hearings and make recommendations to the City Council. The City Council makes all final decisions on these matters. Blaine City Ordinances require that certain documents and information be included in applications. The Planning Commission may postpone consideration of an application that is incomplete and may, for other reasons, postpone final action on an application. For each item the Commission will receive reports prepared by the City staff, open the hearing to the public, and discuss and act on the application. This meeting will be a hybrid of Zoom and in-person. The Mayor has signed a declaration allowing members of the commission, staff, and the public to attend the meeting remotely via Zoom as has been done during the COVID-19 pandemic. The council chambers will have limited seating, with audience chairs being set up at least six feet apart. There will be an overflow area where the meeting can be watched in the Cloverleaf Farms Room, also with chairs set up at least six feet apart. Please note that all visitors to city hall are required to wear a face mask while inside the building. Public comment options prior to the meeting must be received by 4:30 PM on Monday, October 12. Email comments to: probinson@BlaineMN.gov or phone 763-785-6180. Zoom is for members of the public who want to comment remotely during the meeting on an agenda item. Join Zoom Webinar at https://blainemn.zoom.us/j/98664156030 Ways to watch if not commenting on an agenda item: BlaineMN.gov/Video or North Metro TV on Comcast, Apple TV, or Roku Questions? Email - Communications@BlaineMN.gov Tuesday, September 8, 2020 7:00 PM Council Chambers and due to the COVID-19 pandemic, city meetings will also be held as virtual meetings 1. Roll Call The Blaine Planning Commission met in the City Hall Chambers on Tuesday, September 8, 2020. Chair Ouellette called the meeting to order at 7:00 p.m. Due to the COVID-19 pandemic this hybrid meeting was held both virtually and in person. City of Blaine Page 1 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 Members Absent: None. Staff Present: Shawn Kaye, Associate Planner Teresa Barnes, Project Engineer Ben Hayle, Communications Manager Present: 7 - Chair Ouellette, Commissioner Homan, Commissioner Goracke, Commissioner Olson, Commissioner Halpern, Deonatuh, and Villella 2. Approval of Minutes 2.-1 Approval of August 12, 2020 Planning Commission Minutes Attachments: Unapproved Minutes Motion by Commissioner Olson to approve the minutes of August 12, 2020, as presented. Motion seconded by Commissioner Homan. A roll call vote was taken. The motion passed 6-0-1 (Commissioner Goracke abstained). Aye: 6 - Chair Ouellette, Commissioner Homan, Commissioner Olson, Commissioner Halpern, Deonatuh, and Villella Abstain: 1 - Commissioner Goracke 3. Old Business None. 4. New Business 4.-1 Public Hearing Case File No. 20-0029 // Naples Street Office Warehouse // 10580 Naples Street NE The applicant is requesting the following: 1. Rezoning from POD (Planned Office District)/PBD (Planned Business District) to I-1 (Light Industrial) 2. Preliminary Plat approval to plat 40.09 acres into one (1) lot to be known as Naples Street Office Warehouse Attachments: Attachments The report to the Planning Commission was presented by Shawn Kaye, Associate Planner. The public hearing for Case File 20-0029 was opened at 7:08 p.m. Richard Wilder, representative of the Metro Gun Club, stated he was concerned with how the proposed development would impact the Metro Gun Club. He questioned how many of the 40 acres was upland. He inquired what JSN stood for City of Blaine Page 2 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 and asked where the driveway would be located. Associate Planner, Shawn Kaye explained just over 8 acres would be developed out of the 40 acres. She reviewed the location of the proposed driveway and stated she did not feel traffic should be a concern on Naples Street. Mr. Wilder expressed concern with the watershed from this property. He encouraged JSN to make future tenants aware of the fact the Metro Gun Club was located in close proximity. Chair Ouellette encouraged Mr. Wilder to speak with representatives from JSN regarding this matter after the meeting. The public hearing was closed at 7:14 p.m. Commissioner Halpern questioned what type of businesses JSN had interested in occupying this property. He stated he did not want this building to be constructed if there was no demand. Dan Freidner, commercial real estate broker with Newmark Knight Frank, discussed how the commercial/industrial market was faring through the COVID-19 pandemic. He reported retail properties were struggling the most at this time. He indicated the proposed building would house industrial or wholesale users. He explained he was in the process of looking for tenants and noted he has no contracts signed. Chair Ouellette asked if JSN had any other projects similar to this. Mr. Freidner explained JSN Properties has one other building off of Xeon Street south of Hanson Boulevard and Highway 10. He indicated this building was very similar to what JSN was proposing to build in Blaine. Commissioner Goracke inquired if the build out would be flexible. Mr. Freidner reported there would be some level of flexibility. He explained typical tenants in Anoka County like 20% to 30% office space and the remainder of the space would be industrial space. Chair Ouellette stated he was pleased that a new building was being constructed in this area of Blaine. Motion by Commissioner Goracke to recommend approval of Planning Case 20-0029A rezoning from POD (Planned Office District)/PBD (Planned Business District) to I-1 (Light Industrial) based on the following rationale: City of Blaine Page 3 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 Case 20-0029A: 1. The zoning change for the parcel is consistent with the existing zoning of the parcels to the immediate south. The proposed zoning of I-1 (Light Industrial) will provide a buffer between the existing I-2A (Heavy Industrial) adjacent to the south and the POD (Planned Office District) zoning to the north of this property. 2. The rezoning to I-1 would allow the applicant to build the office/warehouse building which allows efficient development on a site that has many challenges and constraints due to wetlands. Motion by Commissioner Goracke to recommend approval of Planning Case 20-0029B a preliminary plat to plat 40.09 acres into one (1) lot to be known as Naples Street Office Warehouse based on the following conditions: Case 20-0029B: 1. Applicant to submit copy of Rice Creek Watershed permit to city prior to any site work. 2. Park dedication will be due with the platting of one lot. The 2020 park dedication rate for industrial development is $6,702/acre for a total due of $52,208 (for 7.79 developed acres). This fee will need to be paid, at the rate in effect at the time of final plat, prior to release of final plat mylars for recording at Anoka County. 3. The Mayor, City Clerk and City Manager are hereby authorized to execute any and all necessary documents, agreements and releases related to the approval, recording or administration of Naples Street Office Warehouse Building. Motion seconded by Commissioner Villella. A roll call vote was taken. The motion passed 7-0. Aye: 7 - Chair Ouellette, Commissioner Homan, Commissioner Goracke, Commissioner Olson, Commissioner Halpern, Deonatuh, and Villella Chair Ouellette noted this would be on the agenda of the October 5, 2020 City Council meeting. 4.-2 Public Hearing Case File No. 20-0025 // Allen Hambleton // 2247 125th Avenue NE The applicant is requesting the following: 1. Conditional use permit to allow for 1,200 square feet of accessory building space (1,192 sf attached garage) in an R- 1AA (Single Family) zoning district. 2. Variance to allow for: a) An additional 1,192 square feet of accessory building City of Blaine Page 4 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 space over the allowed 1,200 square feet with a Conditional Use Permit for a total of 2,392 square feet of accessory building space (attached and detached). b) A detached accessory building to be located within the front yard. Attachments: Attachments The report to the Planning Commission was presented by Shawn Kaye, Associate Planner. The public hearing for Case File 20-0025 was opened at 7:28 p.m. Jason Husveth, explained he owned Outlot A and was the most effected neighbor by what was being proposed. He stated he had no concerns with the additional accessory structure and noted he supported Mr. Hambleton’s request. The public hearing was closed at 7:29 p.m. Allen Hambleton, 8478 Long Lake Road in Mounds View, indicated this was a very unique lot. He reported he would like to keep the two properties (Lot 4 and 5) separate at this time. He understood the accessory structure would technically be in his front yard, but he had 12.8 acres of land that was 220 yards from Main Street. He stated he would like to have the additional accessory structure to store his items indoors versus in the yard. He commented if the structure were moved to the backyard there was a pond in the way. He explained the structure could be placed behind the pond, but this would require him to remove a number of trees. Associate Planner, Shawn Kaye clarified for the record that the applicant also owns Lot 4. Mr. Hambleton indicated he would like to keep his property in two separate lots at this time for investment purposes. Chair Ouellette stated he was having a real hard time with the variance request. Commissioner Goracke commended the applicant for working hard and taking care of this property. However, he did not see an extraordinary circumstance on this lot. Commissioner Olson questioned if the applicant could apply to rezone the property Associate Planner, Shawn Kaye stated the final decision would be made by the City Council but noted staff would not recommend the property be rezoned. Commissioner Olson reported this property was surrounded by wetlands and was quite far from Main Street. She indicated it may make sense to rezoning. City of Blaine Page 5 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 Chair Ouellette stated spot zoning can lead to a whole different can of worms. He explained the City Council does have more flexibility than the Planning Commission, which has to base approvals and denials on City Code. Commissioner Goracke suggested the Planning Commission vote on the Conditional Use Permit and that the Commission make no recommendation on the Variance. Associate Planner, Shawn Kaye encouraged the Planning Commission to make a recommendation regarding the Variance request. Motion by Commissioner Olson to recommend approval of Planning Case 20-0025A approval of the conditional use permit to allow for 1,200 square feet of accessory building space (1,192 sf attached garage) in an R-1AA (Single Family) zoning district based on the following conditions: Case 20-0025A: 1. The total attached garage accessory building space limited to a total of 1,200 square feet. 2. The applicants’ proposed garage must be used for personal storage space only, and it may not be used for a home occupation/business. 3. Garage/accessory building doors shall not exceed ten (10) feet in height. 4. All structures (home, attached garage, and detached accessory buildings) on Lot 5 will require individual fire suppression systems due to their distance from a public street. Motion by Commissioner Olson to recommend denial of Planning Case 20-0025B of the variances for an additional 1,192 square feet of accessory building space over the allowed 1,200 square feet with a Conditional Use Permit and a detached accessory building to be located within the front yard based on the following rationale: Case 20-0025B: 1. This area has a land use designation of LDR (Low Density Residential) and has similar zoning requirements to the north and west, which would only permit a maximum of 1,200 square feet of total garage/accessory building space and require the accessory building to be located in the rear yard. 2. The applicant has other options to locate his detached structure in the rear yard, if a variance were to be granted to the overall accessory building size requirements. 3. Exceptional or extraordinary circumstances do not apply to the property or to other properties in the same zone or vicinity. In fact, several properties in the same vicinity are meeting the current code requirements for accessory building size and location. City of Blaine Page 6 Planning Commission Minutes September 8, 2020 4. That the granting of the variances requested will confer on the applicant special privileges that are denied by this ordinance to other owners of lands, structures or buildings within the same vicinity. 5. Variances, if granted, would be materially detrimental to the purposes of this ordinance, or to other property in the same zone. Motion seconded by Commissioner Villella. A roll call vote was taken. The motion passed 7-0. Aye: 7 - Chair Ouellette, Commissioner Homan, Commissioner Goracke, Commissioner Olson, Commissioner Halpern, Deonatuh, and Villella Chair Ouellette noted this would be on the agenda of the October 5, 2020 City Council meeting. Adjournment Adjournment time was 7:44 p.m. Motion by Commissioner Halpern to adjourn the Regular Planning Commission meeting. Motion seconded by Commissioner Deonauth. A roll call vote was taken. The motion passed 7-0. Aye: 7 - Chair Ouellette, Commissioner Homan, Commissioner Goracke, Commissioner Olson, Commissioner Halpern, Deonatuh, and Villella City of Blaine Page 7